Regulation for Enforcement of the Act on Special Provisions concerning Preservation Methods for Books and Documents Related to National Tax Prepared by Means of Computers

The books related to national tax specified by Ministry of Finance Order prescribed in Article 8, paragraph (4) of the Act are the following books relating to the matters giving rise to an amended return, etc. prescribed in that paragraph (hereinafter in this paragraph and the following paragraph referred to as an "amended return, etc."): journals, general ledgers, and other necessary books prescribed in Article 58, paragraph (1) (Books Relating to Transactions and Matters to Be Stated) of the Regulation for Enforcement of the Income Tax Act (Ministry of Finance Order No. 11 of 1965) (limited to those pertaining to the recording of matters relating to transactions specified by the Minister of Finance); journals, general ledgers, and other necessary books prescribed in Article 54 (Books Relating to Transactions and Matters to Be Stated) of the Regulation for Enforcement of the Corporation Tax Act (Ministry of Finance Order No. 12 of 1965) (limited to those pertaining to the recording of matters relating to claims and obligations on bills (excluding accommodation bills), matters relating to accounts receivable (including unreceived processing fees and other things of a nature similar to accounts receivable) and other claims (excluding matters relating to deposits into and withdrawals from checking accounts), matters relating to accounts payable (including unpaid processing fees and other things of a nature similar to accounts payable) and other obligations, matters relating to securities prescribed in Article 2, item (xxi) (Definitions) of the Corporation Tax Act (excluding those that are merchandise), matters relating to depreciable assets prescribed in item (xxiii) of that Article, matters relating to deferred assets prescribed in item (xxiv) of that Article, matters relating to sales (including the provision of services such as processing and other things of a nature similar to sales) and other revenue, and matters relating to purchases and other expenses (excluding wages, salaries and allowances, statutory welfare expenses, and employee welfare expenses)); or the books prescribed in Article 30, paragraph (7) (Deduction of Consumption Tax on Purchases), Article 38, paragraph (2) (Deduction of Consumption Tax in the Case of a Refund, etc. of Consideration for Sales), Article 38-2, paragraph (2) (Deduction of Consumption Tax in the Case of Receipt of a Refund, etc. of Consideration for Specified Taxable Purchases), and Article 58 (Keeping of Accounts) of the Consumption Tax Act (Act No. 108 of 1988) (limited to these books (hereinafter in this paragraph and the following paragraph referred to as "special books related to national tax") in the case where the person required to preserve has submitted in advance, to the competent district director with jurisdiction over the place for tax payment, etc. (or, where the special books related to national tax relating to the matters giving rise to that amended return, etc. are the books prescribed in Article 30, paragraph (7) of the Consumption Tax Act (limited to those set forth in paragraph (8), item (iii) of that Article) and the books prescribed in Article 58 of that Act (limited to those pertaining to the recording of matters relating to taking delivery, from a bonded area prescribed in Article 2, paragraph (1), item (ii) (Definitions) of that Act, of taxable goods prescribed in that Article), the Director-General of Customs with jurisdiction over the place for tax payment, etc.; referred to as the "competent district director, etc." in the following paragraph and paragraph (3)), a written notification stating that, where an amended return, etc. is made with regard to the matters recorded in the electronic or magnetic records or computer output microfilm relating to these books, the person is to receive the application of Article 8, paragraph (4) of the Act, and the following matters).

the type of the special books related to national tax relating to the notification;

the date on which the keeping and preservation of the electronic or magnetic records relating to the special books related to national tax relating to the notification, or the keeping of those electronic or magnetic records and the preservation of those electronic or magnetic records by computer output microfilm, is to be substituted for the keeping and preservation of those special books related to national tax;

any other matters for reference.

A person required to preserve prescribed in the preceding paragraph who intends to cease receiving the application of Article 8, paragraph (4) of the Act in the case where an amended return, etc. is made with regard to the matters recorded in electronic or magnetic records or computer output microfilm relating to special books related to national tax must submit in advance to the competent district director, etc. a written notification stating that effect and the following matters. In this case, where that written notification has been submitted, the written notification under the preceding paragraph ceases to be effective for the taxable period that includes the date on which it was submitted and the taxable periods following it.

the date on which the written notification under the preceding paragraph was submitted;

any other matters for reference.

A person required to preserve prescribed in paragraph (1) who intends to change a matter stated in the written notification under that paragraph must submit in advance to the competent district director, etc. a written notification stating to that effect and the following matters.

the date on which the written notification under paragraph (1) was submitted;

the matter to be changed and the details of that change;

any other matters for reference.

The requirements specified by Ministry of Finance Order prescribed in Article 8, paragraph (4) of the Act are the requirements prescribed in the following items according to the categories of persons required to preserve set forth in those items.

a person required to preserve prescribed in Article 8, paragraph (4), item (i) of the Act: the following requirements (excluding the requirement set forth in (c) (limited to the part pertaining to (2) and (3)) where the person required to preserve has made it possible to comply with a request under the provisions of laws concerning national tax to present or submit the electronic or magnetic records relating to those books related to national tax):

to use, for the computer processing relating to those books related to national tax, a computer processing system satisfying the following requirements:

where a correction or deletion has been made to the recorded matters of the electronic or magnetic records relating to those books related to national tax, it is possible to confirm those facts and their details;

where the input of the recorded matters relating to those books related to national tax has been made after the ordinary period for processing the relevant business has elapsed, it is possible to confirm that fact;

to make it possible to confirm the mutual relationship between the recorded matters of the electronic or magnetic records relating to those books related to national tax and the recorded matters of associated books related to national tax (meaning the books related to national tax prescribed in Article 2, item (ii) of the Act that are associated with those books related to national tax; the same applies in (b)) (where those associated books related to national tax are ones for which the keeping and preservation of the electronic or magnetic records relating to them have been substituted for the keeping and preservation of those associated books related to national tax pursuant to the provisions of Article 4, paragraph (1) of the Act, or ones for which the keeping of those electronic or magnetic records and their preservation by computer output microfilm have been substituted for the keeping and preservation of those associated books related to national tax pursuant to the provisions of Article 5, paragraph (1) or (3) of the Act, the recorded matters of those electronic or magnetic records or that computer output microfilm);

to ensure a function enabling a search of the recorded matters of the electronic or magnetic records relating to those books related to national tax (limited to one satisfying the following requirements):

it is possible to set the transaction date, the transaction amount, and the business partner (referred to as "record items" in (2) and (3)) as search conditions;

for record items relating to a date or amount, it is possible to set a condition by specifying a range thereof;

it is possible to set a condition by combining two or more arbitrary record items;

a person required to preserve prescribed in Article 8, paragraph (4), item (ii) of the Act: the following requirements:

the requirements prescribed in the preceding item;

the electronic or magnetic records set forth in Article 3, paragraph (1), item (i), (b), (1) include those relating to the facts and details prescribed in (a), (1) and (2) of the preceding item;

together with the preservation of that computer output microfilm, to keep an index book that makes it possible to find the corresponding computer output microfilm by specifying the type of books related to national tax and the transaction date or other date;

to output an index of the recorded matters of each computer output microfilm onto the computer output microfilm to which that index relates;

for the period from the first day of the preservation period of those books related to national tax (meaning the period during which the preservation of books related to national tax is required under the provisions of laws concerning national tax) until the day on which three years have elapsed after the statutory tax return due date prescribed in Article 2, item (vii) (Definitions) of the Act on General Rules for National Taxes for the national tax relating to those books related to national tax (for books related to national tax relating to a national tax that has no statutory tax return due date, the statutory payment due date prescribed in item (viii) of that Article for that national tax) (where the person required to preserve is not a taxpayer of the national tax relating to those books related to national tax, the period corresponding to that period if the person required to preserve were that taxpayer), together with the preservation of that computer output microfilm, to preserve the electronic or magnetic records relating to that computer output microfilm in accordance with the requirements set forth in Article 2, paragraph (2), item (ii) and in (c) of the preceding item (excluding the requirement set forth in (c) of that item (limited to the part pertaining to (2) and (3)) where the person required to preserve has made it possible to comply with a request under the provisions of laws concerning national tax to present or submit the electronic or magnetic records relating to those books related to national tax), or to ensure a function enabling a search of the recorded matters of that computer output microfilm (limited to one corresponding to the function prescribed in (c) of that item (where the person required to preserve has made it possible to comply with a request under the provisions of laws concerning national tax to present or submit the electronic or magnetic records relating to those books related to national tax, a function satisfying the requirement set forth in (c), (1) of that item)).

In the application of Article 12, paragraph (1) (Place of Submission of Documents Relating to a Request for Review) of the Regulation for Enforcement of the Act on General Rules for National Taxes (Ministry of Finance Order No. 28 of 1962) in the case where Article 8, paragraph (5) of the Act applies, the word "又は" (or) before "paragraph (4)" in the proviso to that paragraph is deemed to be replaced with "若しくは" (or, joining a smaller group of alternatives), and the phrase "(Heavy Penalty Tax)" in that proviso is deemed to be replaced with "(Heavy Penalty Tax) or under Article 8, paragraph (5) (limited to the part pertaining to the heavy penalty tax under Article 68, paragraph (3) of the Act on General Rules for National Taxes) (Application of the Provisions of Other Laws Concerning National Tax) of the Act on Special Provisions concerning Preservation Methods for Books and Documents Related to National Tax Prepared by Means of Computers (Act No. 25 of 1998)".

In the application of paragraph (7) of the Supplementary Provisions (Cases Where a Business Is Found to Be Conducted Properly) of the Regulation for Enforcement of the Inheritance Tax Act (Ministry of Finance Order No. 17 of 1950) in the case where Article 8, paragraph (5) of the Act applies, the phrase "(Heavy Penalty Tax)" in item (iii) of that paragraph is deemed to be replaced with "(Heavy Penalty Tax) or under Article 8, paragraph (5) (limited to the part pertaining to the heavy penalty tax under Article 68, paragraph (1) or (2) of the Act on General Rules for National Taxes) (Application of the Provisions of Other Laws Concerning National Tax) of the Act on Special Provisions concerning Preservation Methods for Books and Documents Related to National Tax Prepared by Means of Computers (Act No. 25 of 1998; hereinafter in this item referred to as the 'Electronic Books Preservation Act')", and the phrase "(limited to the part pertaining to the heavy penalty tax under paragraph (3) of that Article)" is deemed to be replaced with "(limited to the part pertaining to the heavy penalty tax under paragraph (3) of that Article) or under Article 8, paragraph (5) of the Electronic Books Preservation Act (limited to the part pertaining to the heavy penalty tax under Article 68, paragraph (3) of the Act on General Rules for National Taxes)".

Where Article 8, paragraph (4) or (5) of the Act applies, the written notice of assessment and determination prescribed in Article 32, paragraph (3) (Assessment and Determination) of the Act on General Rules for National Taxes relating to the penalty tax for understatement or heavy penalty tax is to bear a notation that Article 8, paragraph (4) or (5) of the Act applies to that penalty tax for understatement or heavy penalty tax.